If you remember our topic on
mercury, hopefully you will recall an article about the presence of mercury in
vaccines and how parents thought it was linked to autism. If you don’t, I’ll refresh your memory. Thimerosal is a mercury compound that was
used as a surgical antiseptic and preservative.
It falls under the category of organomercurials, and contains 50%
mercury in the form of ethylmercury that is bound to thiosalicylate to create
merthiolate. The toxicity of thimerosal
was tested in rabbits and other animals as they were observed for a week. It was discovered that animals could tolerate
incredibly high rates of thimerosal; up to 20 mg/kg of body weight. Similarly, humans could tolerate high levels,
especially compared to other mercurial preservatives. Another benefit of using thimerosal was its
ability to preserve immunizations without compromising the potency of the
immunization.
Methylmercury, not to be confused
with ethylmercury, was under scrutiny in the 1960’s which lead the conclusion
of the high toxicity of methylmercury.
Because little was known of ethylmercury, it received similar
scrutiny. However, ethylmercury was
still legal in vaccinations because it was being used in small amounts.
From 1989 to 1999, there was a 273%
increase diagnosed patients of autism.
At the time, the public thought that autism was sparked by parental
emotional distance. When Andrew
Wakefield published an article in The
Lancet about his discoveries of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine and
it’s impacts on autism, parents and caretakers were quick to accept this. Wakefield’s test consisted of 12 children,
who received the MMR vaccine, which he claimed caused autism. He thought that the combination of the three
vaccines caused an infiltration of the intestines that causes it’s fluids to be
released from the intestines and into the blood stream, eventually causing
autism. Many public figures supported
this, including governors, and actress/model Jenny McCarty who had autistic
children of their own.
Wakefield was challenged in 2003
that claimed his test results were inaccurate, and there was no correlation
between the MMR vaccine and autism. Many
other studies provided the same conclusion.
He had his medical license revoked after a hearing that cited Wakefield for
numerous violations, and the British Medical Journal deemed his work
fraudulent. Since his work was already
in the open, many parents had chosen not to give their kids the MMR vaccine in
fear of autism. This eventually would
cause the re-emergence of diseases such as whooping cough and measles.
A major pawn in this was Brian Deer
who began investigating Wakefield in 2004.
He proved that Wakefield’s tests were not only wrong, but also
unethical. Wakefield moved to Texas in
2005 and became a co-founder of the Thoughtful House Center for Children. Here, treatment and research was done for
children with autism. As an incredibly
charismatic and empathetic man, Wakefield gained an even larger fan base, who
believed his words despite the accusations against him. In 2010, Wakefield resigned from the
thoughtful House after the General Medical Council discovered more ethical
violations, including subjecting developmentally disabled children to
unnecessary invasive procedures, mishandling funds, and failing to disclose
conflicts of interest.
Thimerosal has been phased out of
vaccinations, but autism rates continue to rise, without any explanation. Research is constantly being done on this
complex brain development disorder, but the cause is still unknown. There is a high likelihood that an autistic
child with gastrointestinal problems can worsen behavioral issues (a major
symptom of autism), but unlike Wakefield’s predictions, it is one of the few
things that is not a likely cause.
Caretakers are quick to accept any answer of why a child might have
autism, which is why they were so willing to accept Wakefield’s answers.
Wakefield’s article caused a 2%
decline in MMR vaccinations in 1999 and 2000.
As you can imagine, this affected the number of mumps and measles cases
a few years later. These started in 2008
in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, even though these diseases
had been almost completely eradicated.
Cases of measles have happened in Wales, France (20,000 infected),
England (1,168 cases, a 64% increase), and the United States. 2013 was the worst year in measles cases
since 1996. Measles is one of the most
contagious diseases, being spread by coughing and sneezing, yet it is one of
the most preventable by vaccinations.
References
Anonymous. “A
Case of Junk Science, Conflict and Hype.” Nature.com
Nature Publishing Group, 2008. Web 29 Nov. 2014.
Anonymous.
“Vaccines.” Vaccine Benefits. The
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2014.
Baker, Jeffrey
P., MD, PhD. “Mercury, Vaccines, and Autism—One Controversy, Three Histories.” American Journal of Public Health 98.2
(2008): 244-53. Web
Dominus, Susan.
“The Crash and Burn of an Autism Guru.” The
New York Times. The New York Times, 23 Apr. 2011. Web. 27 Nob, 2014
Rattue, Petra.
“The Effect of the Autism Scare on U.S. Childhood Vaccination Rates.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon
Internationa, 15 June 2012. Web 27 Nov. 2014
Whalen, Jeanne,
and Betsy McKay. “Fifteen Years After Autism Panic, a Plague of Measles
Erupts.” The Wall Street Journal. Dow
Jones & Company, 09 July 2013. Web 29 Nov. 2014
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